Origin: Lacey's Summer Vacation
by K Pryde
Summary: Set at the end of Season 5 of my story Down the Rabbit Hole, find out what happened to Lacey during the year between seasons 5 and six. Where will she go? Who will she meet? And will she find out where she really came from? Multiple Crossovers later.
1. Which Dreamed It? Part 1

_A/N: Set at the end of season 5 of my other story Down the Rabbit Hole, so please read that first to understand what is going on. This is just a teaser chapter, but some future chapters will be shorter than what I normally do as they are just snippets of Lacey's summer._

**Which dreamed it? Part 1**

Lacey had been at Bobby's for a few days now. He was pretty surprised when she turned up on his doorstep that night looking like a little lost puppy. She'd been holed up in his spare room ever since, only leaving when absolutely necessary. But moping never got anyone anywhere. It was over now, she was never going to see him again so it was time to find her own place in the world. It had taken her some time to realise this but now she was ready. She had packed all of her stuff together, and there was only one more thing left to do.

As she walked down the stairs she saw Bobby look up from the book he was reading. The surprise on his face was evident. In a matter of days she had gone from being the girl having a break down in his spare room to the person she was now. Ready to face the world. And dressed for it too. She was wearing black jeans, white heels and a glittery zebra print top.  
"It's good to see you up and about." Bobby told her as he got up from his desk.  
"Yeah. I thought it was about time." She admitted. "Bobby I…I just wanted to say thank you, for everything you've done for me. It really means a lot to me. But it's time I was going now. Staying around here… all it does is remind me…" She trailed off. "I need to get out of here, go find a place of my own to belong."  
"I get it." Bobby nodded.  
"Uh, but I have your number and as soon as I get there I'm gonna get myself a phone and send you mine. And you have to promise me that if there's an emergency, anything at all, you'll call me." Bobby nodded.  
"Promise?" She told him firmly.  
"I promise." He smiled wearily.  
"Okay." She gave him a hug before turning around and walking towards the window. "I guess this is goodbye then."  
"Where are you going?" Bobby asked. She turned and looked back at him over her shoulder, smiling slightly. She raised her arm and waved it in front of her. A swirling black portal opened up in front of her. She took a deep breath and stepped through it. A blast of air went through the room and the portal closed behind her.


	2. Which Dreamed It? Part 2

**Which Dreamed It? Part 2  
**

Lacey stepped out of the other side of the portal onto a gravel driveway. As the doorway closed behind her she felt her heart skip a beat. This was it. No going back now, she had made her decision and she would have to stick with it. She felt her chest tighten a little and she breathed heavier, all of the bravado she had shown at Bobby's disappeared as she stared up at the mansion in front of her. She took a few deep breaths, calming herself before she walked across the driveway and up the steps to the front door. She raised her fist and knocked on the door. A few moments later a girl with long brunette hair opened it. She was pretty, about fifteen years old, but a scowl was set into her features.  
"Can I help you?" She asked, studying Lacey.  
"Hi, yes, I'm here to see the Professor if he's available?"  
"Is he expecting you?"  
"Probably not."  
"Ok, well If you want to wait here, I'll go and see if he's free." She asked, taking a step back and indicating the large entryway.  
"Yes, thank you." Lacey replied, hauling her bag into the room and sitting down on one of the sofas. The girl disappeared down one of the nearby corridors. Lacey studied the room. It was large and open, painted in pale but warm colors, with a large staircase leading to the upper floors. At either side of the staircase a hallway disappeared deeper into the building. As Lacey began to study the sculptures around the room, the girl returned.  
"The Professor will see you now." Lacey got to her feet and followed the girl. She took her down a hallway carpeted with lush red and gold. She walked up to a door and knocked on it before turning to go.  
"Thank you." Lacey called after her. The girl turned around and gave her a wan smile before disappearing around the corner. Lacey turned the handle and pushed the door open.  
"Ah, Ms McNulty. It's good to meet you." The Professor wheeled his chair forward to greet her, Lacey shook his hand.  
"How did you…"  
"Know your name? You're not the only telepath around here." He indicated she should take a seat on the sofa. She sat down placing her bag at her feet.  
"You have powers too?"  
"Not quite in the same way you do. You are quite unique, even around here."  
"I don't really know much about this place, just a few things I read."  
"So what brought you here?" The Professor asked.  
"I…I wanted to find somewhere to belong. I was alone for such a long time… and then I thought I found somewhere…but that's over now." She sighed, tucking her hair behind her ears. The Professor nodded.  
"And what do you think my school can offer you?"  
"Well, I never got to go to high school so that's something I wanted to try. And like you said, even around here I'm different so maybe learn a bit more about my powers." The Professor nodded at her.  
"I'm sure we can work something out. The children do most of their studies at the local high school so we could enrol you there. They also partake in extra classes and training here. Does this all sound agreeable?"  
"Definitely." Lacey smiled.  
"Then welcome to the Xavier Institute." The Professor smiled warmly at her. "I'll ask Laura to come back and escort you to your room. We have recently experienced an influx of students so you will have to share a room. I'll have you rooming with one of our long term students who can show you the ropes."  
"Thank you." There was a knock at the door and the girl, Laura, appeared in the door frame.  
"Professor?"  
"Ah, thank you Laura, could you show Ms McNulty up to her room, she'll be sharing with Kitty."  
"Sure, Professor." Laura nodded. Lacey got to her feet and headed for the door.  
"Thank you, Professor."  
"You're welcome." He smiled warmly at her. She followed Laura out into the hallway.  
"I'm Lacey, by the way." She said as Laura led her through the entryway and up the stairs.  
"Laura, but most people just call me X." At the top of the stairs they turned right and headed a short way down the corridor. Laura knocked on one of the doors and a girl with a brunette ponytail answered the door.  
"Kitty this is Lacey, your new room mate, Lacey this is Kitty."  
"Hey! It's great to meet you." Kitty smiled at her happily.  
"You too." Lacey smiled back.  
"I'll leave you to it." Laura said, beating a hasty retreat.  
"Don't mind her." Kitty said closing the door behind them. "She's like that with everyone. So where are you from?" Wow, Lacey thought to herself. Only the first question and already I don't know how to answer it.  
"Uh, I'm not really from anywhere, I kind of move around a lot...well I just came from Sioux Falls, South Dakota." Lacey explained. Kitty nodded.  
"What powers do you have, if you don't mind me asking?"  
"You name it, I can probably do it." Kitty's eyes widened at this.  
"Wow, really?"  
"Uhuh." Lacey nodded, stifling a yawn.  
"Okay well I have some stuff to do in the library so why don't you relax and I can show you around the place tomorrow?" Kitty suggested.  
"Sounds good to me." Lacey nodded. Kitty left the room and Lacey changed into her night clothes. She climbed into bed and sighed at the feel of the cool sheets under her. She had been so worried about this, but she had a feeling she would fit in here just fine. She rolled over onto her side and curled up. Her last thought before she fell asleep was the only thing missing was someone to curl up next to.

The next morning Lacey rolled over to find light streaming in through the open curtains. As she sat up she spotted a piece of paper with her name on it propped up on the dresser. She floated it across to her and unfolded the note. It was from Kitty, saying that she had gone out and hadn't wanted to wake Lacey but she would be back later to show her around. Lacey got dressed and headed down to the entryway, she hadn't eaten since yesterday lunch time and her stomach was starting to grumble. As she reached the foot of the stairs she turned to the right, heading in the opposite direction from the Professor's office in hope of finding the kitchen. She headed down the hallway and pushed open the first set of doors she came to. She smiled to herself as she stepped into the kitchen. There was the remains of breakfast on one of the counters, Lacey headed over to it and picked up a chocolate chip muffin. She was about to take a bite out of it when she heard a voice behind her.  
"I wouldn't do that if I were you." Lacey spun around, a guy with mid length blonde hair was standing in the patio doorway. He smiled shyly at her as he closed the door behind him.  
"I'm sorry?" Lacey asked.  
"I wouldn't eat that if I were you. Kitty made it." His voice had a southern lilt to it.  
"And that's a bad thing?" Lacey asked, unsure.  
"Drop it." He told her. Lacey let it slip out of her grasp. Instead of simply falling to the floor the muffin bounced up and down a few times.  
"Wow." Lacey said, staring at it wide eyed. "Thanks for the warning. I'm Lacey by the way." She held her hand out. The guy reached out and shook it.  
"I heard we had a new student joining us. I'm Sam." Lacey balked for a moment, staring at him. There was a weird resemblance, the long hair, the height. He frowned at her. "Are you okay?"  
"Yes." She pulled her hand back. "You just reminded me of someone." He nodded at her. "So where is everyone?" She asked.  
"They're having a pool party this afternoon so they've all gone to get stuff ready." He informed her. "You should join us."  
"Oh, uh, I don't think I have a swim suit." Lacey explained. "Is there somewhere I can go get one from?"  
"Sure. There's some shops not too far from here. You go out of the institute hang a left, then first right, go about four blocks and take another right and there's a row of shops down there, should do something like what you're looking for."  
"Thanks." Lacey smiled before teleporting out. She reappeared at the end of the drive and followed Sam's directions until she reached a small row of shops. She managed to find a women's clothing store and bought herself a bathing suit. As she headed out of the shop she spotted a small book store across the road. She made her way over and entered the store. The little bell over the door tinkled as it opened, a girl in heavy makeup and goth attire looked up from behind the counter as she walked in. Lacey headed into the stacks and began to browse the books. A lot of them seemed to have mystical or occult titles. Lacey spotted another girl in one of the next aisles. She walked around to the other side of the shelves and cleared her throat. The girl looked up from the book she was reading, a scowl present on her face. She had short black hair with red around the back and she was covered in head to toe scarlet. She looked at Lacey questioningly.  
"Hi..." Lacey balked a little at the glare. "Umm...sorry to bother you... I was wondering if you could recommend anything, I'm fairly new to this and don't really know where to start." The girl's expression softened.

"Sure, come this way." She led Lacey to one of the adjoining aisles and began to pick out books for her.

"I'm Lacey, by the way." She told her as the girl heaped books into her arms.

"Wanda." She replied, concentrating on her task at hand.

Lacey spent the next hour in the store with Wanda showing her books and chatting.

"Wow, is that the time?" Wanda said noticing the clock above the door. "I really better go, my friend is picking me up...five minutes ago." Lacey nodded and picked up her things ready to leave.

"I better get going too."

"Did you want a lift?" Wanda offered.  
"Oh, no I don't want to impose upon you're friend."  
"It's not problem." Wanda assured her.  
"Okay then." Lacey smiled happily. They headed out of the shop and Wanda pointed them in the direction of a guy sitting in a car across the street. As they approached the guy looked up from the magazine he was reading.  
"Hey Mike. This is Lacey, Lacey this is Mike. I said we'd give her a lift." The guy nodded. He had long black hair pulled back into a pony tail and piercing blue eyes.

"Hey, nice car." Lacey commented, giving him a smile.  
"You know much about classic cars?" Mike asked, returning her smile.  
"Oh.. umm no not much, just used to know someone who had one." Lacey replied as she climbed into the back seat.

"So, where can we drop you?" Wanda changed the subject, noticing the pain in Lacey's voice.  
"Oh, umm I'm staying at the Xavier Institute. Do you know where that is?" The two in the front seat spun around to face her.

"You're a mutant?" Wanda asked in surprise at the same time Mike said "You're staying with the X-Geeks?"  
"Umm, I guess, sort of. I don't really know, I just got here yesterday." Lacey shrugged.  
"But you have powers?" Wanda probed.  
"Yeah, I do." Lacey replied, looking down at her hands.  
"So what can you do?"

"Everything." Wanda scoffed at her reply, but saw the look on Lacey's face and stopped.  
"Everything?" She asked quietly.

"Yeah, look I don't really want to go into this now. Thanks for the offer of a lift." Lacey told them as she teleported out of the car and back to the Institute.

When Lacey arrived back at the Institute she found Sam in the entryway waiting for her.  
"Hey, you managed to find your way then." He noted.  
"Yeah, it wasn't too difficult." She gave a small smile.  
"Will you come out here for a moment? There's something I wanna show you." Sam led her back towards the Kitchen and out the back door.

"Surprise!" Came a chorus of voices. Lacey looked on in shock. The pool area had been set up with tables and decorations and there was a bbq going under the gazebo.  
"Surprise!" Kitty came up and gave her a hug. "The Professor said you were feeling down so we organised this to cheer you up."  
"You did all this for me?" Lacey asked.

"Duh, of course we did." Lacey glanced around at all the people

"Wow." Was all she managed to say.

"Did you get a bathing suit?" Kitty asked.

"Yep."

"Then go and get ready!" Kitty led her gently back inside.

A while later Lacey was lying by the pool chatting with Kitty and her friend Amara. The two of them were talking about completely inconsequential stuff, but it was nice to just sit back and relax for a while. As Lacey lent back in her sunbed she caught the Professor's eye and the two exchanged a look. 'Thank you.' Lacey projected to him.

'You are very welcome Lacey.' he replied. Lacey let out a contented sigh and went back to her conversation with Kitty and Amara. She felt like she could finally relax, like some of the weight had been lifted off her shoulders. Not her heart though, that still felt like it was chained down, but for now she would just live in the moment and do her best to ignore these pangs, now she felt like she had somewhere to belong.

_**A/N: Hope you guys enjoyed this one, let me know what you think and review and I will post an early chapter on Christmas Eve. I borrowed Mike from Descendant, he gave me permission ages ago but I never really used him, if you're an xmen fan then check out his story Brotherhood Evolution Thank you to tigereyekum for the lovely review for Down the Rabbit Hole, we'll just have to see what Lacey gets up to ;p **_


	3. Middleverse

**Middleverse**

****Lacey groaned as her alarm went off, jarring her awake. She reached out and slammed her hand down on the clock. 5:45 was way too early to be getting up. She got to her feet and slumped past a tired looking Kitty who was coming out of the bathroom.

"Morning." Kitty yawned.

"Not by my book it's not." Lacey grumbled. Kitty chuckled.

"Count yourself Lucky, at least it's just Magneto and Beast, it could be a Logan session."

"I would have thought two instructors would have been worse than one." Lacey called after her as she splashed some water on her face.

"Yeah, you'd think, but you haven't met Mr Logan yet." Lacey shrugged. She brushed her teeth and changed into the uniform Kitty had given her. The two of them made their way down the corridor and into the lift at the top of the stairs. The lift doors snapped shut behind them and Kitty pressed the button to take them down to the basement level. When they reached the bottom the elevator pinged open. They walked out into a metal lined hallway and followed it until they reached a set of heavy double doors, Kitty pressed in a code and the doors shushed open. A group of students were already waiting in the room for them, Lacey looked around open mouthed, taking her surroundings in. The room was huge and circular with a control room sticking out of the ceiling, the walls were metal and so was the floor.  
"Ah, good, that's everyone." A blue fuzzy creature wearing a pair of glasses came over to them.

"Lacey this is Mr McCoy, one of our instructors, Mr McCoy this is Lacey."

"Very nice to meet you. We're going to start with some warm up exercises so, lets have a few laps and some stretching." Mr McCoy pressed a button on the keypad in his hand and the room around them became a field. Lacey blinked, taking it all in.

"Wow." Was all she could manage. Kitty gave her a smile and they began their exercises. Once everyone had warmed up they regrouped and Magneto began to put them through their paces one by one while Beast had them doing an obstacle course. After some grumbling from Bobby, Beast allowed them to train to some music, using the keypad in his hand to activate the computer in the control room above. Kitty danced her way through the routine Magneto had her do followed by Amara. Lacey was next. She moved to the starting position and took a deep breath. She was about to move when the song cut out and Highway to Hell began to blast over the speakers. Lacey froze, her heart began to pound. She looked around her at the expectant faces, Kitty looked back at her worriedly. She ran for the doors phasing through and out the other side. She ran for the lift, phasing through those doors too and pressed the button for the first floor. She stood there leaning against the wall as the lift began to rise. She had been fine until that point, hadn't even really thought about him, the song had taken her by surprise. She tried to control her breathing but as the doors pinged open she ran again, this time towards the front door. She grabbed the handle and yanked the front door open only to come face to face with Wanda, standing there with her hand raised ready to knock. Lacey stepped back in surprise.  
"Oh, hey. I'm glad I caught you. I wanted to talk to you."  
"Uh, sure." Lacey glanced behind her before shutting the door. "Wanna take a walk?"  
"Ok. And while we walk you can tell me what spooked you." Lacey raised an eyebrow at Wanda. Wanda sighed. "Look, I'm sorry about the other day. We didn't mean to give you the Spanish inquisition. We were just surprised to find you living with the geek squad that's all."  
"It's fine. I'm surprised to be here too." Lacey confessed.  
"So, come on tell me what's wrong."  
"I just... something reminded me of something I didn't want to be reminded of." Lacey stammered, knowing she didn't sound very articulate.  
"You gotta give me more than that." Wanda told her. They sat down on the edge of the fountain at the front of the drive. Lacey took a deep breath.  
"I'm not from around here. At all. I'm not even from this reality." Wanda raised an eyebrow but let her continue. " I came here through a portal because I was so lost, I had to just get away."

"Get away from what?"  
"When I was ten years old, wow this is gonna sound crazy." Lacey ran a hand through her hair.

"Not to me." Wanda promised. Lacey smiled at her gratefully.  
"When I was ten I fell down a rabbit hole and I ended up in some alternate reality version of wonderland. Anyway to cut a long story short I was there for thirteen years, and then one day, I don't know how, I ended up falling out of the sky, back in my own reality and I landed on this car. It belonged to these two brothers, they hunted monsters. Yeah we have those in my reality." She explained at the look on Wanda's face. "So I stayed with them helped them fight and...and I fell in love. I spent a year with them, and then came the final battle. One of the brothers died and the other one, Dean, the one I was with, he left to have a normal life. And that's when I came here. And when you saw me come running that was because.. well it's stupid really but they were playing this song and it reminded me of him and I freaked." Wanda nodded.

"It's OK I understand. You should come visit us at the Brotherhood house, you would fit right in there, we all have our own issues, stuff that tears us apart but we stick together and we make it through." Lacey smiled at her.  
"I'd like that."  
"Great. Well I better let you get back to your training session, I'm sure they're wondering where you got to. But come by and visit us any time. Kitty knows where we are." She smiled before walking away. Lacey got to her feet and made her way back inside. As she walked to the lift she ran into Kitty who was coming out.  
"I was just coming to look for you, are you OK?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. I'll explain later, let's just not have any more rock music for now." Lacey smiled. Kitty nodded and they got back into the lift.

Later that afternoon Lacey kept her promise and Scott gave her a lift, begrudgingly, over to the Brotherhood House. She was actually quite nervous to meet all these people. She walked up the steps and knocked on the front door. She waited a few moments before the door was opened and a guy with mid length brown hair stood there, looking sullen.

"Can I help you?" He asked frowning at her.  
"Oh hey, I'm here to see Wanda." His brow cleared and he began to smile at her.  
"Oh, you're the new girl, Kitty's roommate right? I'm Lance."  
"Yeah I'm Lacey, how do you know Kitty?"  
"We're dating."

"Cool." She smiled back.

"That's not the usual reaction I get from the geek squad." He noted as he led her through the hall and into the living room.

"I'm not sure if I can be counted as one of the squad yet." Lacey shrugged. As she took a seat on the sofa the largest guy she had ever seen waddled through the door.  
"Hey I made cake if anyone wants any." Lacey stared for a moment before Lance introduced them.  
"Lacey this is Freddie, Freddie this is Lacey."  
"Nice to meet you."  
"You too." Freddie replied through a mouth full of cake. At that point Wanda came through the door followed by Mike and a guy with white blonde hair.  
"You came." Wanda smiled.  
"And just in time too. We're about to play Fable on the Xbox." Mike told her. Lacey looked at him like he'd just spouted nonsense.  
"You're about to do whosit with what say?" Mike stared back at her.  
"Lacey is a little out of the loop." Wanda explained.  
"Well, we'll show you how to play then." The blonde guy told her. "I'm Pietro by the way." Lacey nodded.  
"Sounds good to me."  
She spent the rest of the evening with the Brotherhood, they showed her how to play the game and she got to know them all better. It finally felt like everything was slipping into place.

****_**A/N: Hope everyone had a good Christmas and hope you enjoy this chapter, review and let me know what you think!**_


	4. Shadowed Past

**Shadowed Past**

****The crisp morning air blew Lacey's hair across her eyes. She batted it out of the way with her gloved hands before jamming them back in her pockets. Her boots crunched along the gravel path at the side of the institute as she made her way into the gardens at the back. She sat down on one of the benches and took her book out of her bag. She had been at the institute for four months now and was completely settled in. She was attending Bayville High with most of the other students, there was training and extra classes at the Institute and she was spending a lot of time hanging out with the students here as well as the Brotherhood who had become like an extended family to her. After Wanda had invited her over that day she had been visiting them at least once a week. She spent most of her time with Wanda, Tabby and Betsy but she got a long with the guys too particularly Lance, who was dating Kitty, and Pietro, Wanda's twin brother. She felt like she had a life now, people who cared for her. She felt a chill go down her spine and she glanced up from her book to find a man in front of her. She jumped back hitting the back of the bench. Although she could see him she got the impression he wasn't really there as he seemed to come in and out of focus. That and he seemed to be floating several inches off the ground.

"Ms McNulty." He greeted her. "It is nice to finally see you in person."  
"Uh... who are you?" She asked.  
"My name is Dr Strange. I should have come to see you before now, but I wanted to give you time to settle in first."  
"Am I supposed to know you?" Lacey asked, racking her brains. He smiled at her kindly.  
"No. We have never officially met. But I have known about you for a long time."

"How come?"  
"Oh, I watch over things. It is my job to make sure the balance between good and evil is retained."

"Well sorry to say this but you're kind of doing a sucky job." Lacey informed him.  
"I only watch over this reality. Not the one you have come from."

"How did you..."

"There is a very complex story behind all of this, and it is time you were told it. After all, it is your story." Lacey looked at him expectantly and he began to explain.  
"A number of years ago your God visited this reality and just as I sit here with you now I visited him too. Someone as important and powerful as God comes to visit it's only polite to introduce yourself. He told me he was visiting other realities to the one he watched over trying to find some meaning. He was becoming disillusioned with what he had created, the angels and such, and was looking for ... well for want of a better word, an escape. While he was here he studied your friends, the mutants, and he realized that they were just what he was looking for. So he came to me and expressed a wish to have a mutant guardian for his reality. So he, myself and another powerful being from this reality called the Beyonder, created you." Lacey stared at him, unable to speak. "Now God had seen how powerful the mutants were and he wanted to pool all of that power into one being. So to do this he knew that he would have to break the mold a little and make you part angel. Only a very small part." He reassured her. " It would also mean that you would be able to withstand anything the angels threw at you. So you were created and sent down to earth in your world to be born into a normal family. Feeling that his work was done, God left Heaven and everything there behind, safe in the knowledge that you would be there to protect humanity should the need arise. Only there was a slight hitch in his plans. Somehow, after he had left Raphael learned of your existence and decided you were too much of a threat to his plans, and even though you were but a child at the time he decided to get rid of you. So he had Gabriel create an alternate reality around you where you would stay trapped forever." Lacey stared at him open mouthed, letting the words sink in.

"Then... how did I escape?"  
"My guess would be that God set you free. Just in time too by the sounds of it."

"Wow." Was all Lacey managed.

"It is a lot to take in. I must be going now, I just wanted to make sure you knew of your origins." Lacey's head snapped up at this.

"Did Death send you?" Dr Strange smiled at her before fading out, letting her draw her own conclusions.

****_**  
A/N: Sorry for the late chapter, tried to upload the other day and it didn't work and I forgot about it! Hope you enjoyed this one, it's nice to finally get Lacey's origins out there, I've been planning it for sooo long now! Please review and let me know what you think!**_**  
**


	5. Survival of the Fittest

**Survival of the Fittest**

****"Thanks for the lift." Lacey smiled as she climbed out of Lance's jeep with Kitty and Tabby. A group of them had been to the movies and now Lance was dropping them back at the institute. As they headed up the path Lacey shivered, it was a cold night and there was mist gathering around their ankles. When they reached the front door Kitty typed in the code to let them in but nothing happened. She tried again but it was as if the system was down. She tried the door and it opened, the three of them glanced at each other.  
"Right, cause this isn't creepy." Tabby muttered. As they walked through the entryway the institute seemed eerily silent. Normally even at this hour you could still hear a TV going in one of the rooms, but tonight, nothing. They reached the other side of the hall and were walking up the stairs when a large beam of light cut across their path and the silence was broken by the sound of a helicopters blades rotating. They spun around and saw through the sky light that the helicopter was right above them, hovering over the institute. Lacey grabbed hold of Kitty and Tabby and sped them further into the institute, out of sight of the helicopter.  
"Go wake up Mr Logan and the Professor." She told them.  
"What are you gonna do?" Kitty asked.  
"I'm forming the welcoming party." Lacey told them before she teleported back into the entryway. The helicopter was gone now, it had disappeared over the back of the building. She headed towards the kitchen, creeping down the hallway, listening for any signs of life. As she reached the door she saw more lights flickering through the patio doors that led from the garden to the kitchen. She crept across the hall and into the dining room opposite the kitchen and waited to one side of the door. The flickering lights got closer and someone opened the door to the dining room. Lacey held her breath as a dark figure crept through the room. Once the guy was a ways in Lacey cleared her throat. The guy spun around and for a moment Lacey was blinded by the torch strapped to his head, when she was able to see again she realised he was dressed in army camouflage. Lacey jumped in the air and flipped over the top of him before kicking him in the back. She sped back out the door and into the entryway where she was surrounded by blinding light. She took a step back. Suddenly the light parted and a guy stepped through the front door.  
"Ms McNulty?" He called. Lacey squinted . The guy standing in front of her was tall with grey hair and an eye patch, he was wearing a long black duster and combat boots.  
"Yes." She replied.  
"I thought it was about time we met. My name is Agent Nick Fury. I work for a government organisation called SHIELD. We like to keep an eye on non-human activity, particularly places like this, and when we heard of your arrival, well we had to come and see for ourselves."  
"Well you came, you saw, so unless you want to get your asses kicked I suggest you leave." Lacey told him.  
"Before we do, I have a proposal for you. We are putting together a team of people with unique abilities, we would like to offer you a place with them."  
"I don't think so." Lacey replied turning her back on him and walking towards the stairs.  
"Are you sure? I think you would be a great fit with the Avengers Initiative."  
"I'm sure." Lacey called over her shoulder as she reached the top of the stairs and lent against the bannister.  
"Well if we can't persuade you…" He trailed off staring up at her.  
"Fury!" A voice growled from beside her. Lacey glanced to her left to see Logan standing beside her, claws unsheathed.  
"Logan." Fury nodded at him.  
"Don't let the door hit you in the ass on the way out." Logan told him. Fury nodded at him before signalling to his men who filed out behind him.  
"You OK kid?" Logan asked as he popped his claws back in with a snikt and turned towards her.  
"Yeah I'm fine." Lacey nodded.  
"Better head off to bed. You've got training in the morning." Logan told her.  
"Ughh!" Lacey groaned before heading off to her room, dragging her feet behind her. Logan chuckled as he watched her go before heading back to his own room.

_**A/N: Hope you enjoyed this chapter, please review and let me know what you think or if you have any questions!**_


	6. Grim Reminder Part 1

**Grim Reminder Part 1**

****Lacey sat on the side lines of the baseball pitch cheering her team on. Mutant Baseball was a lot more interesting than normal Baseball. Lacey had absconded from playing as she felt she had an unfair advantage over everyone else considering she had all their powers and more. As she watched Jean steal second base her phone began to ring. She pulled it out of her pocket frowning, most of the people who had her number were with her. As she saw Bobby's name flash up on the screen her heart skipped a beat. She pressed answer and held the phone to her ear.  
"Hey Bobby."  
"It's been a while Lacey."  
"Yeah it has..." She trailed off. "So what's up?"  
"I got a case here, could really use your help on, if your free."  
"Of course, I'll...I'll be with you in a bit."

"Thanks." Bobby hung up. Lacey sat there for a moment, not moving. It had been eight months since she fled to this reality to escape. Going back wasn't going to be easy but she had made Bobby promise to call if he needed help, she could only imagine it was something bad if he had actually asked. She got to her feet and strode across the field back towards the mansion. Once she reached the building she headed for the room she shared with Kitty. She changed into something more suitable before opening a portal and stepping through it right into Bobby's kitchen.

"Hey." She said softly, making Bobby jump.  
"Lacey." He gave her a grateful smile before he was engulfed in a hug. Lacey stepped back.  
"So what's the emergency then?" She asked.  
"Well, I got a case that I've got someone working on, they needed a partner on it and they requested you." Lacey's heart felt like it dropped in her chest. She turned as she heard a noise behind her, her heart skipped a beat as a shadowy figure walked through door, but it wasn't who she expected.  
"Sam?" She asked disbelievingly as he stepped into the light.  
"Hey Lacey." He gave her a small smile.  
"How...how...how is this possible?" She asked turning to Bobby. "Is it really him?" She asked him out of the side of her mouth.  
"Done every test I know, that's Sam alright." Bobby nodded.  
"Then I return to how?" She asked studying Sam.  
"I honestly don't know. I remember jumping into the cage and then I woke up in a field, no idea how I got there." Sam shrugged.  
"So, you don't remember the past eight months?" Lacey asked frowning.  
"Well yeah, I remember everything since I got top side."  
"Oh, good I mean... wait, how long have you been top side?" Lacey frowned at him.  
"Uh, about eight months?" Sam replied sheepishly.  
"And you didn't think it was a good idea to pick up the phone and let me know you're alive? Does... " Lacey paused for a moment. She had avoided saying his name for so long. "Does Dean know you're alive?"  
"No." Sam shook his head.  
"Oh... okay well at least that makes me feel a little better." Lacey muttered to herself.  
"Huh?" Sam looked at her confused.

"Never mind. Consider yourself severely reprimanded young man." Lacey wagged her finger at him. A smile pulled at the corner of Sam's lips.

"I'm older than you Lace." He reminded her.  
"Be that as it may, I think you will consider yourself reprimanded when you also remember I can kick your ass three ways from Sunday." She told him, raising an eyebrow at him. Sam balked slightly.  
"Yes Ma'am."  
"Ma'am?" Lacey looked offended.  
"Miss." Sam corrected himself hastily. Lacey nodded.

"I'm only 24 you know." Bobby watched this exchange with an amused look on his face. "So what's this case you need my help on?"  
"There's a bunch of skin walkers up in Oregon causing havoc, figured you were the best person to help me take care of them. You'd fit right in." Sam told her.  
"Fit right in? What's a skin walker?" She asked looking at him blankly.  
"They're people who can take the form of an animal."  
"Like an animagus?" Lacey asked grinning.  
"Pretty much."  
"Ok well, lets go take care of them." Lacey nodded.

"Sure. I need to drop into the base and grab a few things and then we can go."  
"Base?" Lacey looked confused.  
"I uh... I've teamed up with some other hunters recently." Sam told her.  
"Oh, OK, well lead the way then." She gave Bobby another hug before they headed out to the car.

They were driving along the freeway as the sun had dipped below the horizon. Lacey fidgeted in her seat.  
"I miss the Impala." She muttered.  
"What's wrong with the car?" Sam asked, looking a little offended.  
"Hmm...oh nothing...Just not as comfy." Lacey told him. She glanced out the window, watching the world go by.  
"So are you going to make me drag it out of you or what?" Sam asked her.

"Drag what out of me?" Lacey asked turning back to him.  
"Why you're not with Dean? Where you've been for the past eight months?"  
"Oh, that." Lacey looked down at her hands. "I'm not with him...well to put it bluntly, because of you."  
"What?" Sam asked frowning slightly.  
"I heard your whole have a normal life conversation. You were gone, I told him to honor your last wish and he did." She shrugged. "Let's not dwell on it any more. As to where I've been, lets just say at school."  
"School?"  
"Yeah, I never got to go to High School or anything so I've been catching up."  
"What school are you at?"

"Bayville High. It's in New York." She told him. "Well, a New York, not this New York. Alternate version or whatever."  
"Oh so that's why you came through a portal."

"Yep." Lacey laid her head back against the head rest. Sensing she'd had enough Sam concentrated on the driving.

Lacey had slept through the night and the journey to the compound. She was jolted awake as they went through the gates and over the potholes in the ground.  
"Wh...where are we?" She asked Sam.

"This is the family compound." Sam told her.

"Family?" She asked as he pulled the car over and put it into park. "You didn't say anything about family." She said as they got out of the car. Sam led her towards a low grey building that looked like an abandoned warehouse.  
"If your brother is here you are so screwed." Lacey told him as they walked through the door.  
"Sam won't let us bring him in." Came a voice from behind them. Lacey spun round to find an older guy with a bald head standing there studying them.  
"Oh, that's good." Lacey nodded giving Sam a look.  
"Oh right, Lacey this is Samuel, our grandfather, Samuel this is Lacey Dean's..." Sam caught himself. "She's...she's a friend."  
"So you're the girl Sam has been telling me all about." Samuel said as he shook her hand.  
"And you're the Grandfather he told me nothing about." Lacey said giving Sam another look. Samuel chuckled.  
"Well, welcome to the Campbell compound, come on through and meet the rest of them." Samuel said as he led them into the main room where a group of people were sitting around putting weapons together.  
"Christian, Mark, Gwen, this is Lacey, Sam's friend." Samuel introduced them.  
"Oh, so you're what they call the abomination." Christian said, studying her as he got to his feet. Lacey raised an eyebrow.  
"Call me what you like, I'm on your side." Lacey told him.  
"And how do we know that? You've been off for the last eight months doing God knows what with God knows who."  
"Christian." Sam said, warning clear in his voice as he saw the look on Lacey's face.  
"What? You gonna throw your toys out of the pram?" Christian asked Lacey.  
"Believe me, you're not worth it. For the past eight months I have been training with some of the most highly regarded teachers in...well in their reality. Taking down a snot nosed kid like you would be so far below my pay grade you wouldn't believe it." Lacey spat before turning to Sam. "I'll be in the car if you need me." Before stalking out. Sam watched her go looking impressed.  
"She's not joking Christian. She is not the type to go after humans but keep pushing her buttons and she'll kill you in an instant." Sam warned him. Christian grunted, not taking him seriously. Sam rolled his eyes before turning to Samuel.  
"Can I get those silver bullets I asked you about?"

"Sure." Samuel walked over to one of the cabinets lining the walls and pulled a case of bullets out before handing them to Sam. "That should be enough. If you take out the leader of the pack the rest of them should just back down anyway, but there's extra there in case they give you any trouble."

"Thanks." Sam told him before nodding at the others and heading out of the base.

****

_**A/N: Hope you enjoy this chapter, please review and let me know what you think!**_


	7. Grim Reminder Part 2

**Grim Reminder Part 2**

****They drove all day and through the night until they reached a town in Oregon called Burns. They pulled off the highway and into the parking lot of the Rain Fall Motel. Once they had checked in Sam took the research he had done out of his duffle and spread it out on the table.  
"Okay, we're here." He pointed at the motel on the map. "This is the club where the skin walkers have set up shop, its called the Warlock club. They use the club as a front to lure people in, I don't know what happens to these people but so far there are reports of three missing persons cases in the last two weeks. The plan is to infiltrate the club and find out where the missing people are, if they're still alive." Sam told her.  
"Okay, what are we waiting for then." Lacey smiled. She studied the map before taking hold of Sam's arm and teleporting them over to the club.

They re-appeared on the other side of the street facing the club. From the outside it looked like any other night club, dark facing, strobe lighting flashing from within and a bouncer standing at the door.

"Damn." Sam swore.

"What?" Lacey asked, turning to face him.

"You haven't got ID." Sam reminded her. Lacey smiled at him before pulling something out of her bag.  
"Will a drivers permit do?" She asked holding it up.  
"You have a drivers permit?" Sam asked raising an eyebrow.  
"Yep. I was having lessons with Mr Logan and Kitty." She shuddered. Sam looked at her questioningly. "Lets just say most of the stop signs ended up sticking out of the car." She shrugged.  
"Anyway..." Sam brought their attention back to the present. "Lets go then." They crossed the street and headed up to the door of the club. The bouncer took their ID's and examined them before indicating they could go in. As they walked through the door they could hear the beat of the music vibrating through the floor. Lacey grimaced. She wasn't really into the whole club scene. They crossed the crowded room and headed for the bar. Sam ordered drinks for them. Lacey lent against the bar sipping her drink when she spotted a guy heading over to her. He came and stood next to her.  
"Hi." He said, although Lacey could barely hear him over the music.  
"Hey." She replied, stirring the straw in her drink.  
"I haven't seen you here before." The guy commented.  
"I'm just passing through." Lacey told him.  
"That's a pity." The guy said, looking her up and down. "Will you join me for a drink then?" Lacey glanced at Sam who nodded at her.

"OK." She nodded at him.  
"Wonderful. I'm Marcus, by the way."  
"Lacey." She reached out her hand but instead of shaking it he took hold of her hand and kissed it. Lacey raised an eyebrow. This guy was starting to creep her out.  
"Shall we take a seat?" he asked indicating an empty booth at the back of the club.  
"Sure." She nodded and followed behind him. They sat down in the booth and Lacey took another sip of her drink.  
"So, where are you headed to?" Marcus asked.  
"Just travelling around with my friend." Lacey replied, nodding in Sam's direction.  
"Fair enough. We travel around as much as we can as well." Marcus nodded.  
"We?" Lacey asked.  
"Me and my friends. We don't like to spend too much time in one place." He explained. Lacey nodded, glancing around the club. Noticing her attention wandering Marcus lent forward.  
"I know what you are." He said quietly. Lacey stared at him for a moment.  
"You do?" She asked uncertainly.  
"I know one of my own when I see one." Marcus smiled at her. "You're a skin walker." Lacey smiled knowingly.  
"You got me." She admitted, crossing her fingers behind her back.  
"How long have you been..." Marcus trailed off.  
"Almost 2 years." Lacey replied.  
"And you haven't found yourself a pack?" He asked, sounding surprised.  
"No, like I said I travel around a lot so I've never met anyone like me, until now." It was half true, she'd never met anyone with the same...genes as her at all.  
"Well I guess it's your lucky night then." he smiled at her lasciviously. She gave him a small smile back. "Would you like to meet the rest of my pack?" He asked.  
"Yes, I would like that." Lacey chose her words carefully.  
"Follow me." He stood up from the booth and headed right to the back of the club where another bouncer stood guard in front of a door. As soon as he saw Marcus he stepped aside to let them pass. They went through the door and into the back room. The room was quite large but it was hard to see how large in the darkness. A few candles were scattered around the room casting their flickering light against the dank walls. A few people milled about talking quietly among themselves. Marcus headed towards a small group that was gathered around a table at the far wall.  
"Lacey this is Keira, Emily and Jordan, some of the members of our pack. Guys this is Lacey, she's one of us." The three of them nodded at her and whispered greetings before turning back to what they were doing.  
"What's going on?" Lacey asked, glancing around.  
"They're preparing."  
"Preparing for what?" Marcus looked at her, sizing her up.  
"Our pack leader will be here shortly. We make a sacrifice to him once a month and he offers us protection."  
"Sacrifice?" Lacey asked, her eyes widening.  
"Yes." Marcus nodded and indicated the grating in the floor. Lacey looked down and realized there were three people below them cowering in the corners of the cell. Lacey nodded, mentally she contacted Sam and told him what she had found, telling him she would let him know when the leader had arrived.  
"So" Marcus said, leading her over to a set of chairs in one corner. "Tell me a bit more about yourself?"  
"What do you want to know?" Lacey asked.  
"What do you do?"  
"I'm a student at an institute for higher learning in New York." Lacey told him.  
"And what do you study?"  
"A little of everything, science, ethics, hand to hand combat." Marcus raised an eyebrow.  
"Hand to hand combat? A delicate little thing like you?"  
"You'd be surprised." Lacey told him, annoyed. As Marcus looked at her surprised she caught movement out of the corner of her eye. On the far side of the room another set of doors opened and three people emerged. The one that caught Lacey's attention was the tall, grim looking man in the middle. Flanked by two body guards he made his way down the set of steps and into the centre of the room. The groups of people scattered around the room fell silent and all moved together creating a semi-circle around their leader. Marcus got to his feet and Lacey followed him, joining in the circle. Marcus stepped forward out of the group of people before bowing low.  
"Thank you for coming my lord." The guy motioned for him to stand.  
"The sacrifices are ready?"  
"Yes, we have them waiting for you." He motioned to a few of the guys. They headed into the corner of the room and opened the grating before hauling the people out. Lacey called out to Sam in her mind and as the victims were dragged into the centre of the room she made her move. The ground began to quake below their feet, the group of people began to part trying to get to cover as bits of stone began to fall from the ceiling. Lacey strode forward towards the leader, as Marcus turned to her in surprise she placed a hand on his cheek. He turned pale and gasped for breath as she drained his life force until he fell to the ground unconscious. The body guards stepped in front of the leader, Lacey blasted one of them with kinetic energy from her hand, sending him flying backwards across the room before he hit the wall. The second one took a step backwards looking at her wearily, she smiled at him before tendricals erupted from her wrists, grabbing hold of him and sending him flying into his buddy, knocking the two of them out. As she turned her attention to the leader she heard a loud cracking noise, her head snapped around and she saw Sam standing in the doorway with a gun pointed in her direction. As all rest of the people in the room scattered she turned back to the leader to find him crumpled on the ground, a bullet hole through his head.  
"Nice shot." Lacey commented as Sam came to stand beside her.  
"Thanks. Where are the prisoners?" Lacey pointed at the three people in the corner of the room. Sam headed over to them.  
"Come on, lets get you out of here." He told them and the two of them escorted them out.

The following morning they were back in the car heading to the compound.  
"So what are you going to do now?" Sam asked Lacey.  
"Head back to the institute I guess." Lacey shrugged.

"You're not sticking around?" Sam asked.  
"I...I can't. It's to difficult to be here all the time."

"You miss him?" Sam asked. Lacey stared out of the windscreen, calming her emotions before she answered.  
"Every minute of every day. That's why I can't be here. When I'm away I have distractions, things to get on with, friends to spend time with. And it works, most of the time." She shook her head. "But anyway I can always come back if you need me." She pulled a pen out of her bag before taking hold of Sam's hand and writing her number on it. "There now you can call me whenever." She smiled at him. "I'll see you around Sam. I'm glad you're back." She said before teleporting out of the car.

She dropped in to say goodbye to Bobby before opening up a portal to the institute. When she arrived back she headed up to her room and sat down on her bed, her mind was reeling. Making a decision she changed her clothes then packed all of her stuff into a bag. She teleported downstairs before knocking on the door to the Professors office. He called for her to enter and she phased through the doors. The Professor looked up from his desk where he was studying some papers and smiled at her.  
"How can I help you Lacey?" He noticed the bag in her hand. "Are you off on another trip?"  
"Yeah...sort of...I think it's time i was going, at least for a while. I have had an amazing time staying here and I've learnt so much. But I think it's time I started travelling again, I have all these powers, I might as well use them to see the sights." Lacey gave him a small smile in return.  
"Of course, I understand. But just know you will always be welcome to come back, should you choose to."

"Thanks." Lacey's smile widened and she shook his hand. She was truly grateful to the Professor for giving her a place to belong. She turned around and opened another portal. She glanced behind her, taking one final look at the place before she stepped into the swirling mass and it closed behind her.

_**A/N: Hope everyone enjoyed this chapter! Please review and let me know what you think! I've just started writing for season six **_


	8. Growing Pains

**Growing Pains  
**

Lacey stepped through the other side of the portal and found herself standing in the main square of a small town. She glanced around, hoping no one had noticed her unusual entrance. She followed the path that led out of the square and crossed the road. In front of her was a bar and grill. Just then her stomach began to rumble, the last thing she'd had was a sandwich when she was on the road with Sam. She pushed open the door and walked in. Inside the place was quite dark but in a cosy kind of way. She made her way towards a table by the bar, she sat down and began to study the menu.  
"What can I get you?" Lacey glanced up from the menu to see a guy with messy blonde hair standing by her table ready to take her order.  
"Ummm can I get a cheeseburger, fries and a coke please?"  
"Sure." The guy took down her order before heading back to the bar. A minute later he brought her drink over. Lacey sipped at her coke as she glanced around the room. A short while later he brought her food over. As she was digging into her burger she glanced up and saw a guy with sandy blonde hair sit down at the bar next to a guy with dark hair, they began to talk. As their conversation began to get more animated the guy with dark hair gripped the glass in his hand so tightly it began to shatter. Their conversation grew louder and Lacey heard the sandy haired guy say; "No one can stop me from doing anything." He glanced up and caught Lacey looking at them. A second later he was standing in front of Lacey, he grabbed her by the neck. The room fell silent.  
"You see?" He turned back to the guy at the bar. "No one can stop me." Lacey rolled her eyes.  
"Oh please." She took hold of his arm and hurled him across the room. As he hit the far wall the silence in the room was broken and the crowds began to disperse. In a moment he was back on his feet and with a snarl ran at her. Lacey put up her hand and fired an energy blast at him. He went crashing through the bar. As he got to his feet again he spat at Lacey;  
"This is not over." Before he disappeared.  
"Hey." Lacey felt a hand on her shoulder and turned to see the dark haired guy standing beside her. "That was… that was really something."  
"Thanks." Lacey said. She grabbed her jacket from the chair and threw some money on the table and headed for the door. Suddenly the guy was standing in front of her again.  
"Whoah! Hold up there! How did you do that?" He asked, blocking her exit.  
"You wouldn't believe me even if I told you." She said trying to go around him.  
"Try me." He studied her with dark brown eyes. She let out a sigh.  
"I'm part Mutant, part Angel." She told him.  
"Vampire." He said holding his hands up. She stared at him for a moment. "I'm Damon." He held out his hand, she took hold of it and shook it.  
"Lacey."  
"So what brought you to Mystic Falls?"  
"Oh so that's where I am? It was kind of a pot luck thing." Damon nodded. "So who was the Douchebag whose ass I kicked?"  
"That was Klaus, our resident vampire-werewolf hybrid."  
"Sounds…messy." Lacey commented.  
"Oh, believe me, it is." Damon assured her. They could hear the wail of sirens in the distance. "Come on." Damon said taking hold of her hand, they headed out of the restaurant at super speed.

When they stopped they were standing outside a large, old fashioned house. Damon motioned her to follow him through the front door. They walked into a large dark foyer.  
"Who is this?" A woman with long blonde hair and a British accent stood with her arms folded across her chest, staring at them.  
"Rebekah this is Lacey, Lacey, Rebekah." Damon threw his arms in the air. " I don't know why I'm introducing my guest to the squatter."  
"Whatever. I'm going to the bonfire." She strutted out the door.  
"Squatter?" Lacey asked, raising an eyebrow.  
"Another long story. She's the sister of the guy whose ass you kicked." Damon informed her.  
"Oh, right, gottcha." Lacey nodded.  
"Which reminds me, there's somewhere I've got to be, you wanna come?"  
"Sure." Lacey shrugged. It wasn't like she had anything better to do. They headed out and Damon took them to the High School.

When they arrived at the school Damon showed her to a classroom before saying he had to go find someone. Lacey sat down on the teacher's desk, swinging her legs back and forth. Her mind drifted back to the time she and Crowley were waiting for Dean. She stopped swinging her legs, her feet hitting the desk with a bang.  
"Stop it." She told herself, shaking her head. There was a noise as someone opened the door and a group of people walked in. Along with Damon there was a girl with blonde hair, a girl with long dark hair and an older guy who looked like a teacher.  
"What's going on Damon?" The guy asked.  
"This is Lacey, she kicked Klaus' ass today." Damon told them. The three of them looked at her, impressed.  
"Are you a hybrid?" The blonde girl asked.  
"Yes. If you mean a mutant, angel hybrid then yes. If not, no, no I'm not." Lacey trailed off.  
"Well anyone who hates Klaus is a friend of ours!" The blonde smiled at her.  
"Okay, so what's the plan?" Damon asked.  
"I'll lure Stefan away from the bonfire and when he's distracted…"  
"I'll shoot him." The older guy interrupted.  
"Who is Stefan and why are we shooting him?" Lacey asked.  
"Stefan is my brother." Lacey raised an eyebrow. "He is also being compelled by Klaus." Damon explained.  
"Oh, Okay." Lacey shrugged.  
"While we sort out the plan why don't you head up to the bonfire, we'll meet you there."  
"How will I know where it is?"  
"Just follow the mindless drones." Damon joked. Lacey smiled.  
"Okay, I'll see you there."

Lacey walked out of the school and followed the groups of people headed out of the grounds and towards the woods. She approached a clearing where the crowds were gathering around the bonfire, sparks flickering above them into the tree tops. Lacey closed her eyes and scoped the area out using her telepathy, getting the lay of the land.  
"Hey." She felt a hand on her shoulder and opened her eyes to find Damon standing beside her. "Time to put my charms to work on Barbie Klaus." He nodded towards the bonfire where Rebekah was sitting, roasting marshallows.  
"Good luck." Lacey shrugged. Damon smirked at her.  
"I won't need it." He strolled over and sat down on the log next to Rebekah. Lacey rolled her eyes before wandering off through the trees. As she wandered back towards the school she heard a scream. Lacey took a deep breath before rising into the air and flew across the tops of the trees in the direction the scream had come from. As she circled around she flew over the bleachers and saw Elena and the older guy dragging someone, who she presumed to be Stefan into the back of a 4 by 4. As Elena got into the car there was a flash and a gas can on the floor caught alight. The fire began to spread to the car. Lacey could see Elena banging on the windows, trapped inside. Lacey flew straight down towards them, the older guy, Alaric, was trying to prise the door open but to no avail. Lacey reached out a hand, palm open, and pulled the fire out of the car. She closed her hand, putting the fire out, smoke curled up from between her fingers. She reached out and ripped open the door at the back of the car. Elena and a semi-conscious Stefan fell out of the car coughing.  
"Thanks." Elena rasped as Alaric came around and helped them to their feet.

When they regrouped and arrived back at the house everyone tended to their injuries. Lacey sat on the couch watching the fire, sparks flickered out of the grate.  
"Hey." She looked up and found Elena standing next to her.  
"Hey." She gave her a small smile as she got to her feet.  
"I just wanted to say thank you for getting us out of that car. If it wasn't for you we could have been burnt alive." Elena reached out and gave Lacey a hug.  
"Oh." Lacey hugged her back, surprised by the younger girl. "That's ok, it's sort of what I do."  
"I'm gonna go see if Alaric is ok." Lacey followed Elena out into the hallway and found Stefan coming down the stairs.  
"Well you got me tonight. Definitely wasn't expecting that."  
"That was the point." Alaric told him.  
"Yeah. You know, you can hate it all you want to, but Elena needs me. I'll always protect her. I think you're both better off having me around." Elena rolled her eyes before heading towards the door.  
"Elena, wait." Stefan called after them. "You could have let me die in that fire tonight. Why didn't you?"  
"Because I still have hope." She told him.  
"After everything I've done… you still think I'll be able to find my humanity again."  
"Yes I do. I know who you really are better than anyone Stefan. And I'm not giving up."  
"Elena." Stefan leant in close. "Do you have any idea how pathetic that makes you?" Elena exchanged a glance with Lacey.  
"No Stefan, that makes me strong." Elena told him before thrusting her fist forward, plunging two wooden stakes from under her sleeve into his abdomen. As Stefan gasped and fell to his knees Elena threw the device towards Alaric before storming out the door. Alaric smiled at Stefan collapsed to the floor before following Elena out the door.

As Stefan struggled into the living room Lacey headed for the front door.  
"You leaving?" She turned back to see Damon standing at the foot of the stairs.  
"Yeah, it was just a flying visit. I'm kind of travelling around at the moment."  
"Where you heading to now?" He asked.  
"Not really sure, I won't know till I get there." Lacey replied, mysteriously.  
"Do you think you'll come back?" Damon asked as he crossed the foyer towards her.  
"Definetely. Here, give me your phone." He passed it to her and she typed in her number. "There, now if there's an emergency or something you can get hold of me."  
"How about driving Klaus out of town? Does that count as an emergency?" Lacey smiled.  
"I think you can handle that one yourself. But if it turns out you do need me, then give me a call." She gave him a final smile before opening the front door and stepping outside. As she closed the door behind her she took in a deep breath of the crisp night air. She waved her hand in front of her and a portal opened up. Lacey took one more look around before she stepped through and the doorway closed behind her.

_**A/N: Hope you guys enjoy this chapter, let me know what you think! Almost at the end of this story, I've finished the first chapter of season six, so I better get writing more!**_


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